John,
Thanks for the chemistry clarification but somehow I still don't feel any better about this crap wire . There is no cleaning this stuff. It is gummy and is imbedded throughout the strands and there is lots of it. It runs the entire length of the cable so if I trim and strip the ends, it is still there. Curiously, the signal still gets through to the surround speakers.

I live the life I love and I love the life I live.